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Tuning Wars

"It's you. Your second string's off. Tune it up."

The words stung. Moral, cognitive, and musical dissonance fused into one turgid stream as the other harp players accused me of musical ineptitude. What follows is a light-hearted dramatic depiction of the internal struggle those words ignited at a kundi [harp] choir rehearsal in Bili, DR Congo—a struggle not uncommon in our line of work. 

Characters
TWMM: The Western Musician in Me
TEM: The Ethnomusicologist in Me
THB: The Harp Band
WACO: What Actually Came Out, originally in a mixture of Lingala and Mono

Dialogue
TWMM: This sounds awful. Who tuned these instruments?
TEM: Hmm. Sounds like a new style. Wish I'd brought my tape recorder.
WACO: Hi.
THB: Glad you came.
TWMM: The second string. All you guys have tuned your second strings 1/2 step too low.
TEM: Hmm. I wonder what this different tuning implies for the vocal parts.
WACO: Shouldn't we all tune up?
THB: We did.
TWMM: Right. Then why do you sound so bad?
WACO: I still think we're not all on the same road.
THB: It's you. Your second string's off. Tune it up.
TWMM: What!? This is exactly how Punayima taught me. It's not ME, it's all of YOU!
TEM: Hmm. All of them seem to have agreed on the different tuning. Either they have a large tolerance for variation, or this is an alternate system.
WACO: I think Punayima tunes his the way I have mine tuned.
THB: [tolerant smiles]
WACO: No really, I think mine is tuned the way he tunes his. He IS our teacher, isn't he?
THB: Punayima's not here.
TWMM: I don't know if I can stand this for two hours.
TEM: I wish I had my tape recorder.
WACO: OK. I'll retune. Let's play.

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  • Home
    • Brian's Story >
      • Brian in Plain Prose
      • 1Haiku
      • 2DustbowlNoir
      • 3StreamOfConsciouness
      • 4BrownWordle
      • 5ChicagoLimericks
      • 6ZaireJesterStory
      • 7FranceIdeologues
      • 8LosAngelesSchräg
      • 9Hagiography
      • 10HeavenSpokenWord
      • Brian Summarized
      • Narrative CV
  • Songs
    • Brian's Songs >
      • Always Toward Heaven
      • Home in Your Eyes
      • Glimpse
      • Further Up
      • Eau de
      • The End
      • Waiting for Me
      • To Be Free
      • What Does It Matter?
      • All I Do Is For You
      • Elwyn & Marilyn
      • Liminal Lullabye
      • Lydia's Christmas Song
      • We're Not Alone
      • Your Beauty's In Christ
      • Our Garden
      • Melinda Meloo
      • Austin Schlemaustin
      • Lydia
      • Jacob Brian
      • Psaume 139
      • Put It In His Hands
      • This Day
      • Leaves
      • It's Not Me
      • HD Blues
      • A Ring and an Island
      • Always Toward Heaven
      • Perfect
    • Brian Singing Others' Songs
    • Lynelle's Eternal Dance
    • IziBongo
    • High Jinks
    • Lori Tapia >
      • The Places We've Been
    • GlenOak
    • Stan Hamm
    • Beth Hamm Elliot
    • Vintage Enns, Hamm, Schrag
  • Reflections
    • First Moments in Heaven
    • Spiritual Musings >
      • DoHardThings
      • Bolt
      • Shadows
      • SittingLikeMary
      • Worshipping at Home
      • Ex Creatio
      • A Better Joke
      • In the Storm
      • Brian's Creed
    • HD Journaling
    • Schräg
    • Being the Fool >
      • Vele
      • No where to hide
      • Tuning Wars
    • Academia
    • In Memoriam >
      • MarilynSchrag
      • Elwyn-Schrag >
        • EdnasCoda
        • Thanks Dad
      • EdBartlett
  • Material Creations
    • Anchor Beads
    • Butter Dish
    • Poem On Stand
    • Fridge List Pens
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